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Wednesday, March 17, 2010

So Warped, Warping a Loom for Weaving Tapestry by Kathe Todd-Hooker and Pat Spark

ISBN 9780-9753698-6-9

After many years of teaching tapestry and weaving, the authors realize that it is sometimes the warping process that stops a weaver dead in her/his tracks. Traditional weavers often have horror stories about their warping experiences and while many tapestry weavers do not have a background in traditional weaving, they too often see the process as impossibly difficult. In this book we are covering as many warping methods and hints as our combined 60 years of experience have taught us. We have learned these methods through much trial and error. We are certain there are other ways of doing things, but we have hit upon the methods that work well for us and for our students.

To help understand warping, we present different types of tapestry looms, various tensioning and shedding mechanisms including several types of heddles, and the following warping methods: figure eight, circular, bout, four-selvedge, floor loom, and as an added treat, the method of warping the Russian Old Believer backstrap loom for weaving tapestry belts. There are 110 pages of information for warping your loom so you can weave tapestry. If you aren’t warped before you read this book, So Warped will really help you get there.

Pre-publication price is $32.00 plus $5.00 shipping and handling. This special price is only offered through Fine Fiber Press and is only available until April 30, 2010. After that time, the price will be $35.00 plus $5.00 s/h. Discount quantity prices are available for vendors. Order from Fine Fiber Press and Studio, 604 1st Avenue East; Albany, Oregon 97321 USA phone 1-541-917-3251 email: finefiberpress@comcast.net

Saturday, March 13, 2010

WOW!! WE DID IT!!! SO WARPED IS WRITTEN, LAID OUT, AND BEING PROOFED!!! GOOD JOB, PAT, you are so good and getting better all of the time!!!!The book is now in/ready for pre-publication sales. We even have the cost and a discount for anyone who purchases it in advance. 35.00 After release and 32.00 for those who buy a prepublication copy of the book. The book has 110 pages of everything you want to know about warping just about any loom you can weave tapestry on with exception of the shaped tapestry looms which is in the Shaped Tapestry book. I am spending the weekend writing the press release and starting the announcements for the prepublication sales.
Left is a picture of the cover of the book, but without the cool Mulberry coloured background.

BUT, first, it’s time to do my blog. It’s over due and nagging at my conscience to be done. This means I’ll never get anything done if I don’t take care of my goals for the year-Writing my blog every two weeks, keeping up my photo journal, and my weaving journal. Fortunately, for me I am having a very quiet day. Spencer is working at Block, Pat is off on a well deserved visit with relatives and the sun is shining but too cold and wet with rain burst to work in the yard. No one is aware that I even exist today. The phone is not ringing for a change. So, it’s me, my stuff, Wry, Chene and Brahms for the day with maybe a little Hans Zimmer to keep the energy level up.

One of the new things I have learned in the last few weeks is Viking Knitting. It’s really addictive. I can sit and do it for hours. Viking knitting is a type of looping that is done with wire to produce a chain that can be used in jewellery. After it is looped the knitting is pulled through a draw plate that extends it length and turns the rather ugly as in duckling thing into a beautiful sensuous chain. I have a bracelet that I have to wear all of the time so I created a bracelet from the chain. I had looped and attached the old charms to it and added cones and a pretty finding with a flower on it. It looks so much better then what I had been wearing. Pat is putting together a class on Viking knitting that involves using felt. It sounds really interesting. It’s a class I would take if I were going to a conference and taking a workshop.

I finished Kona Orange. I think I’ll leave it with that name. I am taking some teasing from family member’s about-Kona gold, Maui Wowie, and a few other such brand names. It was really good to get it off to the Enchanted Passages exhibit.

The studio has felt a bit overwhelming and imposing for the last month and perhaps a little sinister as in promoting guilty feelings. Everywhere I look; there are warped looms ready to weave on, but no plans to weave on them. It’s like someone gave into a warping fetish and obsession. Actually, they are looms warped for illustrations in the So Warped book, but it’s still intimidating. Let alone staring at the awesome sized space on my large Shannock with all that space ready to be filled for “and HE.”.

The Mirrix is warped and I’ll start the other Kona piece today and be able to stare at the blank warps for another piece that needs to be done by November, but at least I am weaving and not brooding over the other piece. The design still hasn’t come together, but when it does, I am warped. Boy, isn’t that the truth. It must be spring even the looms are waiting with a pregnant pause and the excitement of beginnings. There’s something so satisfying about the first touch of colour on a loom. Of course, another warped loom will be used for my Soumack samples I am trying to get together for my class in Santa Clara on soumack and the More! class I am teaching in August in Albuquerque. I am tired of all of the little bits and pieces of samples floating around the studio. If I get them, all together in one sampler I can lose it instead of just random samples that I need for the class and can never find while packing to teach a class. I keep telling myself this is a good deal! Also, one warp is on the Fine Fiber Press loom and Pat is making ranuu and pick and pick pillow tops so that’s her problem not mine-gr! So I guess perhaps it’s not quite as sinister since many of the looms have a purpose other then making me feel guilty for not filling up the warps. I just need to find the time to fill up the looms.

These are samples of soumack that I have been spending time getting ready to weave. It's not in my sample collection,yet. The Linten roses, or Mayflowers or helleborus are blooming beautifully. Your choice for the proper name that you prefer. What I call them seems to depend on my mood at the given time I am discussing them. They are the one flower in the yard that doesn't seem to mind the heavy rain we keep having. I must have variations of 10 different colours ranging from greenish white to purple. They are fun to watch. They can't seem to make up their mind about what colour they will be. I am definitely going to use them in a tapestry. I have almost decided that I don't like the upper right hand corner of "And He" and may change it to the Lenten Roses, because they are so changeable and can be used to bring on dreams. Sort of an appropriate flower for the piece. Actually it would be the bottom right if turned it's final direction.

This is where I wish I were today. Tomorrow It will be raining. It's already clouding up. So enough about today and the past weeks.It is just so right that So Warped is finished! It's time to move on to the next project a book on colour and colour movement in tapestry and get all of those warps filled up with colour. . But the timing to begin will probably be in September or later for the next book. So I get a few months of weaving and prep time for classes. Cheers and all!

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About Me

I am a tapestry weaver and writer. I have written 4 books on tapestry weaving. I enjoy training my Toy Pomerain-Chene'. I have been teaching tapestry since 1982. I enjoy photograpy, silver smithing, mythology and reading almost anything. I have owned and maintained an international tapestry list since 1996.

I am co-owner of Fine Fiber Press. My studio is called Between. I teach tapestry workshops and have private students that work in my studio. I exhibit Nationally and internationally.

Tapestry2005@yahoo.com

If you have an interst in discussing tapestry weaving, tapestry history, tapestry conservation on an ongoing listplease feel free to contact me to join the list at kathetoddhooker@comcast.net. The list has been in existence since august 1996 and at this point has 420 members.